Memory: Multi-Store Model of Memory

Question 1

What’s the duration of memory??

Answer 1

Length of time info can be held in memory.
STM is 18-30 seconds & LTM lasts forever

Question 2

What’s coding in Memory??

Answer 2

The format in which information is stored (‘how’)
STM is coded acoustically & LTM is coded semantically

Question 3

What’s capacity in Memory??

Answer 3

The amount of information that can be held in a memory store.
The span of STM is 7 items +/- 2 .

Question 4

What are the 2 studies that evaluated duration of memory??

Answer 4

• Peterson & Peterson (1959)
• Bahrick (1975)

Question 5

What did Baddeley in 1966 do??

Answer 5

Gave different lists of words to 4 groups: sounded similar, sounded different, same meaning, different meaning.

If ppts had to recall their list immediately: Worse with words sounding similar

Recall after a time interval: Worse with words with same meaning

Question 6

What did Bahrick in 1975 do??

Answer 6

392 ppts between 17-74. Used high school yearbooks to assess LTM. Found that ppts tested within 15 years of graduation were 90% accurate in photo recognition & 48 years declined to 70%

Question 7

What is the study that evaluates capacity in memory??

Answer 7

Miller (1956): Found that span of STM is 7 items +/- 2. Able to do this by chunking smaller pieces of info together

Question 8

What is the study that evaluates coding in memory??

Answer 8

Baddeley in 1966

Question 9

What’s the Multi-store Model of Memory??

Answer 9

Shows us the journey of information from when we take it (our senses) to the LTM

Question 10

What are 2 of the 5 sensory registers??

Answer 10

Iconic: Visual information coded visually
Echoic: Auditory information coded acoustically

Question 11

Give 3 features of material in the sensory register??

Answer 11

• Only lasts a few seconds
• High capacity
• Little passes into memory unless it’s paid attention to

Question 12

What are the 3 evaluation points for the MSM??

Answer 12

• Research support that LTM & STM are separate
• MSM suggests STM is a unitary store
• MSM suggests that amount of rehearsal is important for info to transfer to LTM

Question 13

What is the research support that the LTM and STM are separate??

Answer 13

Baddeley found that we mix up words that sound similar using STM and words that have similar meaning using LTM.
STM codes acoustically & LTM codes semantically. Increases internal validity of MSM

Question 14

What is the research that goes against the MSM’s idea of the STM being a unitary store??

Answer 14

Shallice & Warrington (1970):
- Patient KF with brain damage
- Poor STM ability to recall information read out to him
- Better recall when reading it himself
- Means there’s at least 2 STM stores: Visual and auditory so it’s NOT unitary
- Decreases internal validity

Question 15

What is a study that contradicts the MSM’s idea of rehearsal??

Answer 15

Craik & Watkins (1973):
- Found that there’s 2 types of rehearsal: Maintenance & elaborative
- Maintenance maintains info in STM
- Elaborative transfers info to LTM by giving it meaning/applying previous knowledge to it

Question 16

What did Peterson & Peterson (1959) do??

Answer 16

24 students each asked to remember a trigram e.g. HYK & a 3-digit number. Asked to count backwards in 3’s from this number to prevent rehearsal of trigram. Found that length of time (seconds) students were asked to count for affected their recall